Here’s why to give to Central Oklahoma Habitat

Returns on donations to Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity spill far beyond the walls of a new Habitat home and the growing equity of its new owner.

As part of the observance of its 30th anniversary (and its annual holiday donation drive; go to www.cohfh.org, and click on “donate”), Central Oklahoma Habitat pointed to some statistics to aid in a decision to give.

It’s enough to make your heart grow three sizes.

An economic impact study by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce sent surveys to 714 Habitat homeowners, got 282 responses, and determined that:

• Habitat homeowners, which now number 900 here, would contribute around $20 million to the metro-area economy annually from 2015 to 2020.

• Habitat homeowners pay $1,000 more per year in property taxes — for police, fire, schools and CareerTech — than when they lived in apartments.

• About 68 percent of respondents reported feeling safer in their Habitat home and neighborhood compared with where they lived before.

• Some 98 percent reported an improvement in their children’s health after they moved into a Habitat home.

• Forty percent reported an improvement in their children’s grades; 94 percent of those with older children saw an improvement.

• Some 97 percent reported an improvement in their children’s behavior after the move into a Habitat home; 95 percent saw improvement in their children’s friends and social life.

• Nearly 75 percent reported setting and following a family budget and improved ability to lower debt once they moved into a Habitat home.

• Finally, 87 percent of respondents said they could not have owned a home without Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity.

So, give, y’all.

I gave hours of clerical equity (and a wee bit of sweat equity) to Central Oklahoma Habitat for a semester in seminary. It’s the real deal. As a Christian charity, it’s the real, Jesusy deal. And that stuff is in short supply.

“It’s not always money. We really worked with more than 9,000 volunteers last year,” Chairman and CEO Ann Felton Gilliland said. “We love to have new volunteers come out and work with us. So there are many different ways to be involved with Habitat to help make a Habitat affiliate successful.”

But if it’s hard cash and sawbucks you want to give, here’s a gift guide perfect for an organization known for its “theology of the hammer.”

• A $50 donation will buy a box of nails.

• $100: window.

• $150: kitchen sink.

• $300: front door.

• $1,000: other exterior doors.

• $3,500: roof.

• $5,000: plumbing or HVAC.

• $10,000: foundation.

• $25,000: kitchen or bathroom.

• $90,000: a whole house.

Central Oklahoma Habitat builds 45 houses a year and wants to make that 60. The need is there and likely to grow. Go to www.cohfh.org to give. Make your heart grow.